


Choke On Smoke

by bluejoseph



Series: CANYOUSAVE [2]
Category: Twenty One Pilots
Genre: ? - Freeform, Angst, Happy Ending, M/M, Sad Tyler, could be read as platonic, fuck summer, i wanna hibernate and wake up in autumn, seasonal depression
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-07
Updated: 2019-06-07
Packaged: 2020-04-12 02:15:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 762
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19122532
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bluejoseph/pseuds/bluejoseph
Summary: They were right when they said hell was hot. Fire and brimstone, indeed.





	Choke On Smoke

Gravity does not always seem to function as it should.

Tyler noted this as he lay on the carpet, staring up at the ceiling fan as it whirred on and on in a swift, almost frantic motion. Gravity had failed him, or reversed, or what have you, pulling him towards the earth far stronger than it should. Gravity had made his body heavy with an unpleasant weight, until he had been unable to stand, thus resulting in his current state.

The carpet was worn from years of abuse, but it was familiar against his cheek. Tyler’s hand scratched at it for a moment, and he wished that it were longer so he could twist it around his fingers and pull like it were hair, a repetitive motion to appease his brain.

At the same time, he didn’t have near enough energy for such a thing, so his hand stilled after a few seconds. The ceiling fan was moving too fast, and the air conditioner was running. It was an older system, too loud, and the sound of it starting up, the artificially cool air made Tyler want to throw up. 

It had been summer, unofficially, for a few weeks now, and Tyler hated everything about it. The heat made it unbearable outdoors, driving him into the house. He felt like a wild rabbit, being cornered by wolves. This happened every year.

Despite the skyrocketing temperatures outdoors, Tyler’s body was adorned with layers of clothing--a flannel over his white t-shirt, a pair of jeans over knee-high black socks. He felt secure in layers. It was one of his usual summer routines: he tried to trick his body into thinking it was winter. He dressed warmly, he bundled up under his blankets, he kept the curtains closed and refused to look out the windows at the clear blue sky. 

It helped, but it wasn’t much. Tyler’s body still knew better.

During the winter, he flourished. As the rain and snow tumbled down, he was filled with energy. Tyler cleaned the house, wrote for hours, turned in his articles early. He cooked full meals with meat and vegetables and potatoes. 

And he braved the weather, too! The world, at this time, was beautiful to him. He went grocery shopping, visited his family, went out with Josh. He sat on the balcony and enjoyed the coziness, the comfort that came from the cool air against his face.

All that Tyler felt against his face now was carpet.

They were right when they said hell was hot. Fire and brimstone, indeed.

He stayed there on the floor for hours.

Hours, until Josh came home. Tyler had been staring at the corner of his bookshelf, mind blank, when he heard the front door unlock. 

Josh called out to him, but he didn’t reply. He was there; that was the problem. Tyler was too there. He was too present in this time. He just wanted to sleep, to turn his brain off.

His boyfriend entered the room slowly, saw him lying on the carpet, and crouched down next to him. “Hey,” he said in a soft tone. Tyler felt a hand stroke his face.

Using his voice would take too much energy. ‘Hey,’ he mouthed. He shut his eyes.

Neither of them spoke. For the next thirty minutes, Josh helped. He sat Tyler up, leaning against the edge of the bed, rubbed feeling into his arms and shoulders, until Tyler was able to do it on his own. He shook his hands, his head. His brain felt like it was stuttering, like TV static. 

Josh shut the air conditioner off--they had to leave it on some of the time, to keep the temperature bearable, but it was loud and it made Tyler want to throw up. The boy rubbed his arms as Josh moved about the house, making sure the windows were thoroughly covered, the curtains clipped shut by clothespins. Then, the soft sound of rain on a rooftop, on window panes, coming through the speakers. A shudder went down Tyler’s spine, relief. There was a certain website that played rain sounds indefinitely, with settings for day and night as well as additional pieces of thunder, birds singing, and the sloshing of puddles. It was Tyler’s favorite.

Soft hands, again, this time running through Tyler’s hair, the way he liked it. Josh hummed, not a tune, just a hum, and Tyler knew this was his way of asking if he was feeling any better.

He leaned into Josh’s touch, hummed back. It was all that was needed.

**Author's Note:**

> summer can suck my ass :)


End file.
